St. Cloud To Be Audited Petition Bears Enough Signatures To Get State To Review Accounts

July 29, 1987|By Veronica T. Jennings of The Sentinel Staff

ST. CLOUD — A voters petition drive netted enough signatures to force a state audit of all city accounts, a county elections official said Tuesday.

Donna Bryant, the county supervisor of elections, said 1,496 signatures were valid on the petition. According to the elections office, 6,400 voters were registered for St. Cloud's March elections.

Under state law, the Florida Auditor General must conduct an audit of a municipality if a petition is certified with signatures from at least 20 percent of the registered voters. The petition garnered 23 percent, Bryant said.

Bryant said she sent the petition results Tuesday to the Auditor's General Office in Tallahassee. She said she also sent affidavits from four residents who asked that their names be removed from the petition.

Organizers of the petition drive were elated Tuesday about the results.

''That's great,'' said Dan Logan, who walked throughout the city to collect signatures. ''Now we'll let the auditor general take care of it.''

Mayor Bob Renick was out of town Tuesday and City Manager Jim Chisholm was unavailable for comment.

But council member Steve Johnson said he's willing to go along with the audit if that's what the residents want.

However, Johnson, who was elected in a run-off race in April, said he doubts the audit will turn up evidence of wrongdoing by city officials.

''I don't think there's been a misappropriation of funds,'' Johnson said. ''They may pick up some small things . . . but I don't think they will find large sums of money that have been mishandled.''

Since April, a loosely organized group has been gathering signatures to force a state audit of all city departments dating back to 1982. One week ago, the group presented Bryant with a petition containing 1,797 names.

The citizens claim an audit is needed to investigate complaints of sloppy management and financial improprieties. Supporters of the petition say residents mistrust city hall because of problems with St. Cloud electric utility.

After an internal audit earlier this year, the city admitted to overcharging electric residents and agreed to return about $841,000 to St. Cloud and county customers.

However, opponents claim a citywide audit is a waste of taxpayers' money and a result of political sour grapes.

No one knows how much the audit will cost. St. Cloud must pay for the audit, which could range from $35,000 to $175,000.

Bob MacKichan, a Narcoossee resident who helped organize the petition drive, said the results put the votersgroup in the drivers's seat. ''We're home free,'' he said.

MacKichan said the next step will be to arrange a meeting with the Joint Legislative Auditing Committee in Tallahassee. The state lawmakers' panel will review the petition and order the auditor general to conduct the audit.

Terry Shoffstall, the committee's executive director, was unavailable for comment Tuesday, but a staff aide said the committee's next meeting is scheduled for Aug. 24.

To certify the petition, Bryant and her staff reviewed each name on the petition to verify the signature and to be sure the person was a registered voter in St. Cloud.

Of the 311 signatures that were disqualified, Bryant said many were rejected because the person was not a registered voter or the individual was not registered to vote in St. Cloud. Signatures also were ruled invalid because they were illegible or duplicates, she said.